I have not been a member long enough to know exactly why, but we are a small, pretty strict singleness of purpose group, and the general consensus seems to be that most people being forced there by the courts aren't serious, and there are enough real alcoholics around that do actually want the help to keep us busy.

I do not like the court card signing. Everyone watches the court people getting their slips signed. And Noels is right there should be a separation between church and state. Treatment should be mandatory and let the AA meetings be on their own. Like bill said, the court orderd folks pull away from the impact of the meeting. Nice topic.

the beauty of aa is that no member has any right to stop anyone coming to a meeting, ( doesn't stop some from trying to control it but then there still dry living )

the beauty of the program is we let go of our old ways of getting our own way and really do start to focus on others rather than ourselves ( takes many years and a lot of pain to be able to finally come face to face with the fact of seeing we are running on our own will, takes years to come to see that we are reacting to what we believe is right. the old ways are we would go to the grave trying to prove we are right

now we dont care about being right at all, we dont try to oppose anyone or any cause we just dont get into it and as a result we get peace in our minds and hearts and able to show real love for people and help if we can ( that means getting off our selfish backsides and getting out there trying to help someone in need not sitting around doing bugger all but preaching quotes and making ourselves look so self important like so many who preach a good program seem to live by

but there i go again judging people as if i know what is right or wrong see its always there that first thought, that first reaction but the good thing is its followed today by another thought much more peaceful.

desypete wrote:the beauty of aa is that no member has any right to stop anyone coming to a meeting, ( doesn't stop some from trying to control it but then there still dry living )

the beauty of the program is we let go of our old ways of getting our own way and really do start to focus on others rather than ourselves ( takes many years and a lot of pain to be able to finally come face to face with the fact of seeing we are running on our own will, takes years to come to see that we are reacting to what we believe is right. the old ways are we would go to the grave trying to prove we are right

now we dont care about being right at all, we dont try to oppose anyone or any cause we just dont get into it and as a result we get peace in our minds and hearts and able to show real love for people and help if we can ( that means getting off our selfish backsides and getting out there trying to help someone in need not sitting around doing bugger all but preaching quotes and making ourselves look so self important like so many who preach a good program seem to live by

but there i go again judging people as if i know what is right or wrong see its always there that first thought, that first reaction but the good thing is its followed today by another thought much more peaceful.

Hey Pete!

Always a pleasure to read your posts. How's it going?

“To laugh often and much; to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children...to leave the world a better place...to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded.” -- Ralph Waldo Emerson

hi ezdzit247 its all going well thanks, hope your welli think i am at the stage of recovery were if i see a wet paint sign i dont touch it anymore : ) as a result i save myself from all sorts of bad moods and rantings at the painter as its the painters fault for painting it and for putting a wet paint sign up isnt it ?

maybe its a good idea to not touch the paint in the first place and to follow the warning of the sign ?

i hope next to be able to stop walking on grass when a sign says keep off the grass : )

shimmer wrote:I have not been a member long enough to know exactly why, but we are a small, pretty strict singleness of purpose group, and the general consensus seems to be that most people being forced there by the courts aren't serious, and there are enough real alcoholics around that do actually want the help to keep us busy.

well I was taught that I would rather let a thousand people in that don't need AA than miss one that does

Robert
Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in pretty, well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out and loudly proclaiming WOW What a ride!!!!

desypete wrote:hi ezdzit247 its all going well thanks, hope your welli think i am at the stage of recovery were if i see a wet paint sign i dont touch it anymore : ) as a result i save myself from all sorts of bad moods and rantings at the painter as its the painters fault for painting it and for putting a wet paint sign up isnt it ?

maybe its a good idea to not touch the paint in the first place and to follow the warning of the sign ?

i hope next to be able to stop walking on grass when a sign says keep off the grass : )

LOL....

“To laugh often and much; to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children...to leave the world a better place...to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded.” -- Ralph Waldo Emerson

shimmer wrote:I have not been a member long enough to know exactly why, but we are a small, pretty strict singleness of purpose group, and the general consensus seems to be that most people being forced there by the courts aren't serious, and there are enough real alcoholics around that do actually want the help to keep us busy.

well I was taught that I would rather let a thousand people in that don't need AA than miss one that does

Exactly! Thanks....

“To laugh often and much; to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children...to leave the world a better place...to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded.” -- Ralph Waldo Emerson

I'm also one of those under 18 old delinquents who was ordered to AA by the courts. I didn't have a drinking problem. I had a getting arrested all the time problem. I also claimed I only had a drug problem. It wasn't my drinking making me doing all the crazy crap, it was the drugs. I'll be eternally grateful to some of those AA members who knew that denile is a big symptom of alcoholism and helped me to get honest with myself about my drinking.

I had to chime in here. Isn't our program for the newcomer? I was court ordered to my first meeting for a drunken brawl. I also had a severe drug problem. If anybody had told me that I wasn't welcome because I shot heroin there is a good chance I would be dead. The fact of the matter is there are tens of thousands of people dying in our country every year from drug overdoses. Alcoholics Anonymous is more readily available than any other 12 step program. I come from one of, if not the, worst affected parts of the country when talking about the opioid epidemic. In my area there are 326 AA meeting every week compared to right around 30 of the other program. Most of the newcomers walking in definitely have drugs in their story. I understand the whole "singleness of purpose" thing and respect it during every meeting but not everybody walking through the door for the first time does.

To say that a group won't sign a court sheet is like telling someone they're not welcome at the meeting.

I'm not trying to start anything but we all need to realize the world is changing, the good ol' fashioned alchie is a dying breed...yeah, pun intended.

but there i go again judging people as if i know what is right or wrong see its always there that first thought, that first reaction but the good thing is its followed today by another thought much more peaceful.

Sounds like me. Thanks for the reminder.

Good to see you Pete. Keep sharing the Love!

If I'm not able to say how I'm working my program today, then I'm not working my program.The e-AA Group's 7th Tradition link: www.e-aa.org/group_seventh.php

Here in the UK I more often hear talk of court cards than see them - in fact in all the time I've been going to meetings I've never seen one. Only time I was asked to sign anything as a meeting secretary was for a trainee social worker who came to open meetings and listened, as a sort of alternative placement.

Oliver"In exchange for bottle and hangover, I have been given the keys to the kingdom."

Thanks for this. As I was sitting here reading your share, I realized that I too was nudged (just not by a judge) into my first meeting before I was ready to accept this simple program. Despite my reluctance and denial, the seed was planted none the less.

I am grateful for the open mindedness of the program and it's members that I was allowed to keep coming back until I was ready, because it took a while for the seed to grow.

It surely didn't happen at that first meeting because I couldn't wait to get out there and grab a beer. Which is exactly what I did, because I didn't have a problem, although my nudgers thought otherwise.

I've spent years going to AA even though I wasn't ready. You couldn't convince me that my using was what was actually ruining my life. But I went faithfully for a long time, and people just told me to keep coming back. I'm so grateful for those people who signed my slips (cross addicted here, but I've always preferred AA) because finally I'm at a point where I can admit complete and total powerlessness and take suggestions.

but there i go again judging people as if i know what is right or wrong see its always there that first thought, that first reaction but the good thing is its followed today by another thought much more peaceful.

Sounds like me. Thanks for the reminder.

Good to see you Pete. Keep sharing the Love!

thanks paige by the way i dont try to share about love, i try to give it or show it if i can, as talk is cheap, it is how i have been brought up in the rooms by some very hard nosed people in aa but yet have the softest hearts i have ever come to know they told me years ago dont just talk about being bloody grateful get off your backside and show it lol i didnt like that much and it stuck in my head until of course i did start to get off my backside and put some work in

I think it is reprehensible and a clear violation of about 4 different AA traditions that groups are signing "court slips" for people to attend AA and bring the signatures back to the Probation officer or Judge or whoever. It makes AA as a whole an officer/agent of the court. It violates my anonymity every time I go to a meeting and someone signs one of those slips. We should not allow the Criminal Justice system to use AA in this fashion. most of those people are not ready to be there anyway and do not want to be there. They go in and out, side talk, and generally disrupt the whole affair. AA is not supposed to be involved in anything political and that is exactly what signing those slips -reporting attendance to the court or some other court appointed custodian of the attendee constitutes. Each group is autonomous but every group is involved so you might as well make it the 3rd tradition. I warn you that allowing AA to used as a pawn of the government in this fashion will soon begin to de-evolve AA as a whole. Before long the government will want us to remove God from the program and the book etcetera etcetera. Mark my words you let government in and they will soon own and control us and Bill's dream, work and passion will disappear into oblivion